Chronicles of a boy and his Tati

Once upon a time there was a little boy who kicked the covers off at night. So his parents covered him up in a pink fleece zip-up sleepsack. Finally, he was warm and safe and snuggly, and he slept.

The pink sleepsack became his best friend, and he called it Tati. Tati was the first thing he reached for in the morning, and the last thing he cuddled at night. He dragged it over sidewalks and grass, carpet and wood, until his mama had to take it from him and wash it till it was squeaky-clean and fluffy-soft.

On his first day of preschool, Tati was with him. He entered the classroom, full of strange teachers and children, with his lower lip quivering and tears in his eyes. But he held Tati close, waved to his mama and went inside. When he broke his finger, Tati went with him to the emergency room, and comforted him even when they put him on a cold, hard bed and poked him and hurt him. When his big sister teased, "Pink is for girls!", he stoutly refused to listen and hugged Tati harder.

The boy had many adventures, and his faithful Tati always went with him. Even though he sometimes had to leave Tati behind, he knew Tati would always be waiting for him.

This isn't very long, as Chronicles go; the boy is, after all, only 3. But I'd like to think I can predict how the rest of it may go:

The boy will have many more adventures, and his faithful Tati will always go with him. Giving him courage, reassurance, love and strength.Someday, the boy will enter kindergarten, and on his first day, Tati will be with him. As he enters the door to his classroom, he will see his mama behind him, with her lower lip quivering and tears in her eyes. He will run back to her, give her a hug and hand her the Tati, saying, "Here mama, you need Tati more than I do."His mama will hold Tati close, breathing in the little-boy smell. She will wash Tati until it is squeaky-clean and fluffy-soft. She will fold it carefully and put it away. The Tati will stay hidden for many years, until the little boy becomes a big boy, and perhaps has a little boy or girl of his own. And then the Chronicles will begin all over again.

There is a children's book that you may want to look into. I read it often to my son who had his own "tati" when he was little. It's called "Something From Nothing" by Phoebe Gilman,a Canadian writer. It has wonderful illustrations and a wonderful story about a boy and his blanket and what happens to the blanket when it gets old and tattered......... :)

I have a 15 year old who still drags his Tati (never heard that term before) around here at home. We call him "Linus" because he takes it, along with his pillow, from room to room to snuggle up with his constant companions, the dogs. :-)

Your post brought back some bitter-sweet memories. I too had a Tati when I was a little girl. My Tati was a green and white cat made from terry cloth, stuffed with foam, and his name was Oh-yan.

Unfortunately my love for Oh-yan was very intense and rather brutal and so he started falling apart. By the time I was around six years old he was not only in tatters but also very dirty and my mother couldn't wash him nor mend him. So he was thrown out.

I slept with my pink blankie every night up through the night that I was in labor with my son. It was so comforting to hold onto something from my childhood as I waited to welcome my baby into his own. And strangely enough, I don't need it anymore to sleep. Becoming a mother did something to me - I now get to be the comforter instead of the comforted. It's amazing, isn't it?

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Bonggamom is a a work-at-home parent to a daughter and twin sons. She is balances freelance writing, social media management, and parenting, constantly looking for new ways to entertain her kids while doing as little housework as possible.